Skáldskaparmál - 01.01.1997, Page 184

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Artii Einarsson
Downfrom there were shown angel orders, lower down the firmament which encloses
in its circuit all the regions of air,7 and there also were depicted the heavenly bodies.
Below came the clouds and the winds, then many kinds of birds, lowest of all the earth,
with its plants and trees and diverse animals, the seas and lakes too, with many kinds
of sea-beasts. On the lower ceiling running round outside the central pillars, deeds of
antiquity were portrayed, and stories of famous kings. The King looked long upon all
this. As he reflected upon it, a thing happened which seemed stranger to him than all
else: he felt as if the bed were revolving beneath him, or it might have been the whole
building. Then drowsiness overcame him, and he slept for a while.
Next morning, the King first tests the arts of Sigurð and Dag, to his complete
satisfaction. He then consults Rauð about his dreams. Rauð describes and interprets
the dream, in which the King saw a mighty cross8 bearing a crucified figure, its head
enclosed in an aureole. Starting from the head of red gold, the figure was made of
metals andother materialsin descending order of value. The parts were identified with
the reigns of succeeding Norwegian kings, beginning with Olaf’s own reign of red
gold. The qualities of the different metals are expounded with full use of allegory, to
demonstrate the decline in the rulers of Norway down to 1155.9
The decoration of the body reflected that of the ceiling. The heavenly bodies
were inscribed on the breast and arms, the deeds of antiquity were engraved on
the uppermost part of the belly10 and the plants, trees and animals on the rniddle
part of the belly. The story ends by Rauðúlfr’s sons joining King Olaf and Dagr
Rauðúlfsson proving that Björn the steward was responsible for the thefts.
The Design of the Dream House
The description of the house is sufficiently detailed to allow a reconstruction of
its ground plan (Fig. 1). If we follow the Holm perg. 4 4to manuscript the main
features of the ground plan are the following:
1. A circular outer wall.
2. Four doors and equal distances between all of them.
3. Division of the house into four quarters.
’ “þann er hvelfdur er utan um loft öll”, the one which encloses all the spheres (lofts or attics).
The word loji is used in plural which suggests a reference to the celestial spheres, although it
might also refer to the three regions given e.g. by William of Conches: ether, upper air and lower
air (Philosophia mundi 1, 18-20, tr. Maurach 1974). “Loft” has a double meaning, both used
for “air” and for an “attic” (cf. “loft” in English). I4th and 15th century lcelandic texts on the
spheres and planets are found in G.k.S.1812, 4to; AM 238, fol.xix; AM 685d, 4to (see Simek
1990, pp. 397-^íOO).
8 The cross was “green as grass”.
9 End of direct quotation from J.E. Turville-Petre (1947 p. 2).
10 It is made clear that the deeds are those of Sigurd Fafnisbani, King Harald hilditönn and King
Harald hárfagri.